Category Archives: drawing

The beautifull canvases i made for my baby girls nursery. Each character was hand drawn by myself whilst looking at an image taken from google. I then added colour using acrylic paint. I used flat colours to enhance the characteristics of the cartooon.

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This is an experimental development of a combination of techniques which I have employed in previous studies. I wanted to use the idea of Scibblism and combine it with the previous work which I have done in the application of pigments and texture. I wanted this piece to be much more introspective than anything I have produced so far. I made two canvas test pieces to ensure that the techniques which I intended to apply to my main work would be satisfactory and produce my desired results (Image 1 and 6).

After preparing my board with Gesso, I applied acrylic paint in Scribblism mode to attempt to create the flow and occasional turbulence of passing time. Choosing the primary colour, blue, for the background was significant as it can be interpreted in different ways; “blue sky thinking” and “feeling blue”. I grated pastels and chalks over this wet paint to create shades of colour and texture. I now needed to superimpose three silhouettes of myself on to this background in order to create a simple form of triptych. I wanted to make a different form of self portrait which did not rely on facial features but which could still portray a variety of moods or eras in my life. Again the choice of colour was important and I decided that red, yellow and green give out many significant signals; anger, fear, calm, danger, happiness, maturity and growth to name a few. At this point I decided to name my painting, “The Rhythm of Life”. (Image 1)

I needed to separate the back ground turbulence from the inner emotions of the silhouettes. To keep consistency with my chosen title, I collaged the outlines with torn scraps of music manuscript. I chose music because it, too, can reflect moods or specific happenings in one’s life. I felt it represented a barrier between inner emotions and exterior pressures and it provided a textural barrier between the elements of the painting.

This piece is bold and colourful and can be viewed with interest close up or from a distance. It would certainly attract attention and comment. One could say that it was too simple or too symmetrical to be aesthetically pleasing. Looking at my finished work, I know that it represents the emotions which I wanted to convey but one could question whether viewers would understand its significance without explanation.

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I decided to continue with my manifesto on Scribbilism, putting it into practice:

MANIFESTO OF SCRIBBLISM

The Scribblists Est. 2011

1. We shall rejoice in the primitive form which gives us vast freedom to express our uninhibited emotions. We will endeavour to break through barriers which have remained locked and barred since time remembered and proceed to crash through the red lights which we, ourselves, have installed. In this way, the multi-layers of implanted techniques, prejudice, hypocrisy and false sophistication should be swept away until only the seeds of primeval art remain. From these precious seeds our movement must grow and thrive until a multitude of worthwhile forms emerge.

2. No longer shall we be classed as Surrealists, Pop Artists or Modern Artists and remain in our artistic towers, protected by the rich and influential. This must now become the era of the Scribblists and our movement shall be free and open to all people. Art shall no longer be a world closed to most but the majority will now tread boldly into territory so long ignored.

3. Our struggle shall be to take giant steps into the past to produce art of the future instinctive to man. We must throw off the “cloak of mystery” which surrounds our craft, with its hidden interpretations, political and social undertones and critical snobbery. History and reputation should be forgotten. Technological advances should be ignored as everyone is encouraged to take part working from that inner core that exists in all mankind.

4. Inspiration must be found when we observe the first determined clutches of tiny hands on giant crayons as our children display this natural art, which, henceforth, shall be known as Scribblism. We watch as they use their primitive tools in a dagger-like grip……and learn. The first unsure marks become a deeply personal and unrestricted flow of line, shape, form and colour. It is from these roots that our tree will grow, flourish and spread. A freshness will have evolved breathing new life into art. Poetry will flower as poets, too, embrace the simple word and watch the lines, rhythms and patterns emerge.

5. Line, shape and colour must fill the voids which other art movements have left untouched. From this a spontaneous response will emerge that threatens, challenges, but, also, encourages and enriches mankind. Scribblism must never be selective or critical. Eventually some will try to rationalise our work but our movement must always say, “Come and join us” and never “Your work is not up to the standard that we require”. No one should fear failure.

6. Our work as Scribblists is intended to be “out there”, not hidden in pristine galleries, but big, bold and breathtaking, for all to see. We must use the empty spaces and the dull places, but we must never be confused with the school of Graffiti Artists because our movement must never be secretive but receive public acclaim and judgement. Above all, it should never be competitive; never seeking the awards that many modern artists desire.

7. We demand that our public buildings and spaces will be filled with excited enthusiasts and be places where young and old will experience the joy of paint, pastels and chalk and feel the power of crayons, brushes and pencils. Art, in its meaningful primitive form, will have returned to the people and no one will be offended when their work is referred to as “Scribble”.

I tried yo use as many different medias as possible to experiment with different techniques and outcomes. I then decided to work on a bigger scale, onto canvas, again, experimenting with different media and scale. By doing this I felt I was engagin with the media fully and discovered ways I could use the media to create a decent strong image, but out of ‘scribble.’ It just goes to show that even at a young age we engage with art without realising.

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Five a Day

Focusing on an aspect in art which I dislike, I decided to create a canvas piece which would involve drawing on a large scale and painting. I then combined this with something I found interesting and inspired me, Pop Art. I incorporated this style in my canvas piece, by playing with the scale of the fruit, making it more abstrat, I also used bright, vibrant colours, which are often used in Pop Art. Kepping it bold and colourful to the eye I felt this piece was a success, a personal challenge for myself.

More Than Just a Mouthfull

My second piece is focusing on an excisting talent but doing something different with it. For example this is a Photoshop piece where I have incorporated freehand drawing directly onto Photoshop, taking an iconic Pop Art image (the mouth) and combining it with a traditional landscape to provide an image, which represents a play on words, ‘More Than Just a Mouthfull.’ I have again used vivid colours for the mouth and background to represent the Pop Art element and more neutral tones for the landscape to contrast the two elements.

Being Human

This piece represents Human Growth. The image of the human is drawn by hand using Photoshop, this enhanced my existing Photoshop skills as it was a technique that I have not used previously. The background was again created manually and a textured image overlayed to produce a more realistic effect. I have used pastel colours to give an earthy feel to the piece. The contracst between the pale human image and the black incubator gives it a Pop Art atmosphere.